This application claims priority to prior Japanese patent application JP 2002-249231, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to a card slot assembly which is able to receive one or more cards.
There are some kinds of cards, each of which has a shape similar to others. For example, one type of smart cards is similar to a PC card except for its thickness. Since the PC card is thicker than the smart card, the PC card cannot be inserted into a card slot for the smart card. However, sometimes the smart card is inserted into a card slot for the PC card by error.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a card slot assembly which can prevent an unsuitable card from being inserted into a card slot.
According to this invention, a card slot assembly receivable a card is obtained, which comprises a frame, stopper means, and button means. The frame is provided with a guide groove. The guide groove is arranged at an inner side of the frame in a first direction and extends in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, and the guide groove is formed with an accommodation space. The accommodation space is outwardly depressed in the first direction. The stopper means is movably held by the frame and is movable within a movable range between first and second positions. The first position is a position where the stopper means traverses the guide groove in a third direction perpendicular to the first and the second directions. The second position is a position where the stopper means is accommodated in the accommodation space. The button means is positioned in the guide groove and is linked with the stopper means, so that, when the button means is pressed, the stopper means is moved to the second position.
In an embodiment of this invention, the button means may preferably be comprised of two button portions, which are opposite to each other in the third direction. The stopper means is allowed to move to the second position only when both of the button portions are pressed.
In a preferred embodiment, the card slot assembly according this invention is able to receive a first type card and a second type card, the first type card being thicker than the second types card, wherein the guide groove is for guiding insertion of the first type card, and the button portions are positioned apart from each other in the third direction by a predetermined distance, which is larger than a thickness of the second type card.
Further objects, features and advantages of the present invention are comprehensible from the following description of embodiments of the invention in connection with the drawings attached hereto.